Chapter 272: Whatever Moves You’ve Got, Just Bring Them On – If I So Much as Dodge Once, You Win!
Ah, this trip to Kunlun Mountain, Zhang Yangqing really took his arrogance to the absolute limit.
To put it plainly, the Heavenly Sacrifice Ceremony at Kunlun Mountain was basically a trap, a “Hongmen Banquet.”
If anyone else was attending a Hongmen Banquet, they’d definitely be on their best behavior, treading carefully and watching their words.
They’d be worried that the hosts would latch onto some verbal slip-up and use it to attack them.
Then, the consequences would be unpredictable, especially since they’d be on someone else’s turf.
But Zhang Yangqing was different. He came specifically looking for trouble, afraid that the hosts wouldn’t make a move.
You need a reason to attack me?
Don’t bother looking for one; I’ll give it to you directly!
Because by the time Zhang Yangqing arrived, he already knew someone was plotting against him.
So why should he be polite?
And why did Zhang Yangqing choose that moment to say he was leaving? Because he knew those old-timers were in a meeting scheming against him.
He had originally planned to wait until after the concluding meeting to deal with them, but Zhang Yangqing felt staying any longer was pointless, just wasting his time. So he simply called the old-timers out.
It wasn’t because Qingxu Daozhang leaked the information. There were plenty of Daoist experts in that meeting other than him.
Besides, during the Daoist Conference at Wudang Mountain last time, many of those Daoist experts had added Zhang Yangqing as a contact.
To curry favor with Zhang Yangqing and maybe get some benefits, some of them had called him even before entering the meeting room.
You could say Zhang Yangqing heard every word of their conversation loud and clear.
Fortunately, the association heads didn’t intend to go for the kill, only wanting to seal him away.
So Zhang Yangqing just gave them a normal beating.
Don’t think I, Zhang Yangqing, won’t hit you just because you’re old.
As long as I don’t kill you, I don’t care if you’re injured or crippled.
Five minutes after Zhang Yangqing left, the six association heads managed to crawl out of the rubble.
They were all disheveled, with blood on their lips and chins, their beards stained red.
Some had mud in their hair, looking utterly pathetic.
Tang Zhong had to be helped up by his Tang Sect disciples.
He hadn’t expected Zhang Yangqing to be so ruthless, nearly beating his old bones apart.
The last time he was this seriously injured was forty years ago.
As a long-established powerhouse, he hadn’t faced a real opponent in a long time.
Today, he learned that there’s always someone better.
The others weren’t any better off. Zhao Jinlai, head of the Tianshan Association, flew the farthest and crashed the hardest, losing a layer of skin off his back.
The worst off was probably Yao Ci, head of the Kunlun Mountain Association.
Not only was he seriously injured, but his sect’s main hall was destroyed, and even the statue of their founding ancestor was smashed.
Their plan to “invite the gentleman into the snare” had turned into inviting a wolf into the house.
They had still underestimated Zhang Yangqing’s combat ability.
The fact that Zhang Yangqing dared to come proved he wasn’t afraid.
And since he wasn’t afraid, it meant someone was about to be in trouble.
His main principle was: Whatever moves you’ve got, just bring them on – if I so much as dodge once, you lose.
A Zhang Yangqing at his peak was a true, well-rounded “hexagonal warrior.” What was there to fear from a mere formation?
Seeing his old acquaintances in such a state, Qingxu Daozhang could only offer a few words of comfort.
Not that he was being insincere, but even if he had helped, it wouldn’t have changed anything.
Those six, using the Six-Pointed Demon-Sealing Grand Formation, had basically felt victory was certain.
In theory, there shouldn’t be any problem they couldn’t solve with the six of them acting together.
That’s why they had spoken with such confidence earlier.
Who would have thought someone could actually break their formation, and with just one move?
Now, they were seriously injured, the hall was destroyed, and it couldn’t be repaired quickly.
The concluding meeting had to be postponed.
This news caused a huge stir in the Dragon Kingdom’s cultivation world.
At first, no one knew what had happened, but everyone guessed something went wrong on Tianyong Mountain.
Many people had heard a violent rumbling from the mountain, saw the sky churning with lightning, and felt the ground shake.
But when they tried to go up and check, the various associations had already blocked off the area, so they didn’t know what happened.
To avoid losing face, the six association heads ordered everyone nearby not to spread the story.
But despite that, the news quickly spread throughout the cultivation world, causing a huge sensation.
Yao Ci was puzzled. They had already suppressed the news, so how did someone leak it?
He didn’t think Qingxu Daozhang would tell anyone, and his own disciples had no reason to. Who could it be?
Could it be Zhang Yangqing?
But that was unlikely. What was leaked was a video, and Zhang Yangqing hadn’t had his phone on him at the time.
Based on his understanding, Zhang Yangqing’s pride wouldn’t stoop to doing something like that.
So who was it? Yao Ci was utterly baffled.
In fact, there was one person no one paid much attention to, someone who had been by Zhang Yangqing’s side the whole time.
That was Xiao Xuan, who had almost zero presence.
No one paid him any attention when he arrived, so he had nothing better to do. He found a good angle and filmed the whole thing – Zhang Yangqing effortlessly dominating the six association heads.
Then he shared it everywhere, showing off.
He made sure everyone knew about it.
After this incident spread, the six association heads expected to lose all face. But surprisingly, people didn’t seem particularly shocked or surprised by their failure.
Because Zhang Yangqing’s strength was evident to all. Their failure was only to be expected.
The commotion in the Dragon Kingdom was huge, but other places weren’t quiet either.
It wasn’t just Zhang Yangqing. Top experts in other countries were also constantly suppressing their own nations’ supernatural forces.
Various supernatural forces were fighting fiercely over resources.
During this time, some organizations had even been disbanded or destroyed.
As for how to tackle the Ghost Story Worlds, after going through it once, the major powers of Blue Star had gained some experience.
Relying solely on force definitely wouldn’t work. Who knew what the next Ghost Story World would be like?
So, they had an optimal strategy: recruit previous “completers.”
Those who could complete a world were generally people who adapted well to the Ghost Story World and reacted quickly.
Furthermore, their experience made them the ideal candidates for entering again.
After recruiting these people, the major supernatural forces would invest heavily in training them.
This would give them a better chance to avoid danger and, on top of surviving and completing the world, increase their odds of getting hidden rewards.
At this point, so-called “completers” became hot commodities, fought over by all the major forces. Some of the stronger completers received invitations from dozens of organizations, and some were even forcibly taken away.
Abdul, a completer from the Turban Country, successfully joined a supernatural force and began his cultivation journey.
The most chaotic place was probably Eagle Sauce Country (USA), where many wealthy individuals started forming their own supernatural alliances to compete for entry into the Ghost Story World. They championed “freedom” above all.
Countries like Noodle Country (Italy, likely referring to the Vatican’s influence) were more stable. With the Pope there, even if other forces were unhappy, they were quickly suppressed.
After all, the Pope was one of the world’s top experts, acting much like Zhang Yangqing, no longer needing to reason with other forces.
Also, his own force already had strong completers, so he didn’t really need to recruit more; he just needed to build prestige and followers.
Longhu Mountain had even less need for that, since the strongest completer of all was right there with them.
Even if completers that other forces were fighting over wanted to join Longhu Mountain, they’d be rejected.
Those completers might be rare talents elsewhere, but at Longhu Mountain, they’d just be idle folks.
After Zhang Yangqing finished dealing with the Kunlun Mountain issue, the final “chosen one” from the Ghost Story World barely managed to settle their score.
He waited at the Kunlun Mountain airport for his plane, ready to go back and start the next round.
Other people needed a buffer period after leaving the Ghost Story World because they had been on edge the whole time.
Zhang Yangqing didn’t need that. He had gone in there to slack off.
Just then, a figure walked over.
If it were anyone else, Xiao Xuan would have stopped them, but he didn’t pay this person any mind.
“Whoa, you’re wearing the purple robe! Should I kowtow to you first?”
Luo Hao started with a joke as soon as he arrived.
After all, he and Zhang Yangqing were kind of friends.
He looked Zhang Yangqing up and down exaggeratedly, his eyes full of envy.
So this is the robe only someone who inherited the Daoist tradition can wear.
“I wouldn’t mind if you did kowtow, but shouldn’t you be staying put at the association? What are you doing here?”
Zhang Yangqing had caused such a huge scene at the Kunlun Mountain Association. Normally, Luo Hao should be back there cleaning up the mess.
“It’s nothing major. There are plenty of people over there. I came to see you off.”
Luo Hao shrugged, seeming quite indifferent to the Kunlun Mountain affair.
It’s not like Zhang Yangqing trashed the Xiaoyao Sect…
“You didn’t come all this way just to say that, did you?”
Zhang Yangqing knew Luo Hao well enough – he wouldn’t seek him out unless he wanted something.
Seeing his little scheme was exposed, Luo Hao gave an awkward smile.
“Here’s the thing. You know how us Xiaoyao Sect disciples aren’t exactly top-notch. So, I was wondering… could we perhaps send one or two disciples periodically to your place for some advanced training?”
This was Luo Hao’s real intention.
Longhu Mountain had abundant resources and intense cultivation, so naturally, people improved faster there.
Other sects had fewer disciples and fewer resources, so their training was more casual, with very few engaging in hard, ascetic practices.
Luo Hao, after all, was the heir to his sect and the future head of the Kunlun Mountain Association. His master and the current head were getting on in years, and he had to think about the long term.
Simply put, he wanted to send his sect’s disciples for further training at Longhu Mountain.
It wasn’t about taking advantage or grabbing resources.
The main goal was that Longhu Mountain had experience in clearing Ghost Story Worlds.
It was only natural that Zhang Yangqing wasn’t sharing that experience with the whole world.
But Luo Hao figured Zhang Yangqing must have shared quite a bit internally at Longhu Mountain.
If he could learn some of it, then when bigger Ghost Story Worlds appeared later, his Xiaoyao Sect would have countermeasures.
Although Longhu Mountain wouldn’t get any direct benefit from this, he still came, shamelessly, hoping Zhang Yangqing would agree based on their friendship.
Because if Longhu Mountain set conditions, his small, modest sect couldn’t possibly meet them.
Luo Hao had prepared himself for rejection, and Xiao Xuan also thought Zhang Yangqing wouldn’t bother with such troublesome matters.
But Zhang Yangqing agreed, which surprised both Luo Hao and Xiao Xuan.
However, there was only one spot, and whether the disciple could actually train at Longhu Mountain would depend on passing Zhang Yangqing’s assessment.
Hearing Zhang Yangqing agree, Luo Hao was overjoyed and thanked him profusely.
After giving some further instructions, Zhang Yangqing shooed away that annoying guy.
He didn’t want someone chattering beside him, disturbing his peace.
After Luo Hao left, Xiao Xuan voiced his confusion.
“Heavenly Master, letting disciples from other sects cultivate at Longhu Mountain doesn’t seem to benefit us.”
“I’m just doing him a favor. He’s worth giving face to. There might not be any obvious benefit now, but there will be in the future.”
Xiao Xuan wasn’t thinking long-term yet, and Zhang Yangqing didn’t blame him.
His way of thinking was still simple; he was just a disciple of Longhu Mountain.
Looking at this from a long-term perspective, Zhang Yangqing’s decision made sense.
While waiting for the plane, Zhang Yangqing slowly explained it to Xiao Xuan.
On the surface, Zhang Yangqing agreeing to Luo Hao’s request brought no benefit to Longhu Mountain. But if you predicted a few years down the line, the benefits became clear.
First, given Luo Hao’s abilities, his future status and position would definitely be significant.
He might not quite catch up to Zhang Yangqing, but doing him a favor was worthwhile.
Given Luo Hao’s future status, he could indeed save Zhang Yangqing a lot of trouble.
Second, the disciples selected to come to Longhu Mountain for training would have good talent and strength.
Not to mention that this person might one day repay Longhu Mountain, but at the very least, they wouldn’t harbor hostility and would help spread Longhu Mountain’s good name.
Finally, if other forces heard about this, wouldn’t they go crazy trying to please Zhang Yangqing and Longhu Mountain, just to get a single slot?
This would greatly enhance Longhu Mountain’s reputation. Potentially, future pillars of various major sects would have all been “trained” at Longhu Mountain.
This significantly expanded Longhu Mountain’s influence.
No matter how you looked at it, Zhang Yangqing wasn’t losing out.
After hearing Zhang Yangqing’s explanation, Xiao Xuan understood – it did make sense.
“Indeed, the Heavenly Master isn’t one to be taken advantage of.”
Xiao Xuan didn’t know why, but following Zhang Yangqing, he always felt the path ahead was blazing with light and held infinite promise.
He also started understanding why the natives in the Ghost Story World, who schemed against other chosen ones, trusted Zhang Yangqing.
Because those natives saw the future and hope in Zhang Yangqing.
That’s a born leader, possessing an unparalleled charisma.
They returned to Longhu Mountain around six in the evening. The sky was painted with brilliant, colorful sunset clouds, gilding the mountains with a layer of golden warmth.
The winding paths were shrouded in mist, and occasionally, the melodious sound of bells echoed through the mountains. Everything felt mysterious and solemn.
Although Zhang Yangqing disliked trouble, seeing the continuous stream of tourists offering incense and praying made him, as the head of the sect, quite gratified.
At the very least, he had fulfilled his master’s expectations.
He just happened to have exceeded them by quite a lot.
Back then, his master only hoped he wouldn’t ruin Longhu Mountain. He didn’t expect great achievements, just that he’d smoothly pass the position of Heavenly Master to the next generation.
Zhang Yangqing was speechless at the time. Do I look like that kind of person?
Sure, I like to slack off, but I’m not reckless.
Actually, Zhang Yangqing’s original plan was just to slack off, live a quiet, ordinary life, and pass on the position of Heavenly Master.
Who knew the Ghost Story World would randomly pick him? After that, he couldn’t hide anymore.
Since it had come to this, he had to find ways to slack off.
Back in the rear courtyard, the disciples around him looked at him with even more admiration.
Zhang Yangqing didn’t like to bring up these things, but Xiao Xuan had already shared everything he could in the Longhu Mountain group chat.
This undoubtedly gave the Longhu Mountain disciples immense motivation.
They also wanted to be like Zhang Yangqing, throwing powerful punches when faced with doubts.
If you’re strong enough, all conspiracies and schemes become useless.
If Zhang Yangqing were a rigid, conventional person, he wouldn’t be able to navigate the Ghost Story World so smoothly.
The other disciples were excited, blocking Xiao Xuan’s way, begging him to fill in the details.
They envied Xiao Xuan for getting to go out with Zhang Yangqing every time.
Xiao Xuan looked quite pleased with himself. Before, the master favored me. Now, the Heavenly Master favors me too. Looks like on Longhu Mountain, I’m the chosen one!
Just as everyone else was happy about Zhang Yangqing’s victory, Su Muyu looked worried.
He had many things to manage and had to consider Longhu Mountain’s development within the Dragon Kingdom.
Zhang Yangqing had just offended six major associations at once. While Zhang Yangqing himself might be fine, Longhu Mountain disciples might clash with people from those associations outside.
Not every disciple had Zhang Yangqing’s strength. Making too many enemies would make things difficult for them.
Regarding his senior brother’s concerns, Zhang Yangqing smiled and explained, “You don’t get it, Senior Brother. Our advantage isn’t just strength; it’s youth. In another forty or fifty years, we’ll still be around. But the question is whether those old-timers can last another ten years.”
Judging from Luo Hao’s attitude, Zhang Yangqing knew that no one from the younger generation dared to provoke him anymore.
So what if those old geezers held power now? How old would he be in ten years? Could they outlive him?
The waves of the Yangtze River push those ahead. A new generation replaces the old on this earthly stage.
He had become Heavenly Master early; he could also leverage that advantage.
If he offended the older generation, so be it. They couldn’t outlive him anyway. He’d just make more connections with the younger generation.
Zhang Yangqing was confident that no one from the younger generation would dare disrespect him.
After all, he had even seen Yao Ci’s own disciples rushing over to take photos with him.
Zhang Yangqing was very careful this time. He only demolished one main hall.
Hearing this, Su Muyu said nothing more.
What was done was done, and he trusted Zhang Yangqing’s judgment.
Still, he gave a verbal warning, advising Zhang Yangqing to exercise a bit more restraint in the future.
Zhang Yangqing could accept his senior brother’s words.
After all, he was just looking out for Longhu Mountain.
Next, Su Muyu urged him to check what resources he had obtained this time.
Because the final chosen one had settled their score, and the achievements had been announced.
Out of 200 chosen ones, only 37 successfully completed the world.
Last round, there were still over a hundred. This round, the number was pitifully small.
What they called a “godly match” would have been a joke without Zhang Yangqing.
Because while other supernaturals might have performed poorly, this one was genuinely divine.
Gregori, the Red Cardinal from Noodle Country (Vatican), narrowly completed the hidden mission this time. With only thirty percent of his strength restored, he dared to go kill the new Mother Insect. He managed to slay it, but was heavily injured, nearly dying before hitting the “complete” button.
It was said his injuries were severe, and he wouldn’t wake up anytime soon.
His score barely reached SSSS, but his personal rewards were unknown.
Given his physical and mental state, he would definitely miss the next Ghost Story World.
Surprisingly, Goncharov, the chosen one from Bear Country (Russia), was in the second tier of chosen ones, but he also completed the hidden mission and got an SSSS rating.
He had a unique insight into the Ghost Story World, often pulling off surprising, clever moves.
As an ordinary person, he had maximized his abilities. It was said that after coming out, he also joined a supernatural force formed by a group of Bear Country experts.
Hilde, the chosen one from Hans Country (Germany), got a C rating. Knowing he couldn’t get SSSS, he just messed around inside for a bit, killed the creepy bug that had bullied him, and then completed it.
His rating was expected. He had tried his best, almost getting himself killed.
His affiliated supernatural force wouldn’t blame him.
As for the other chosen ones, quite a few got SSS ratings, mostly from the top tier of supernaturals.
They were just one step away from obtaining materials, but their mental state was still okay.
Ten ordinary chosen ones got SS ratings, an excellent result.
The rest got lower scores due to taking too long to complete the world.
Unsurprisingly, Zhang Yangqing got an SSSSS rating. Audiences in the Dragon Kingdom were used to it by now.
If he succeeded a few more times, then all places in the Dragon Kingdom afflicted by Ghost Story manifestations would be completely cleared.
Then the Dragon Kingdom would become the first place in the world without any Ghost Story manifestations!
